St. Lawrence has struggled mightily out of the gate this season, dropping their exhibition contest to McGill (Montreal, Quebec) by a final score of 3-2 before losing 3-1 to Michigan and 4-1 to #10 Penn State at home last weekend. And it doesn’t get any easier for the Saints after visiting Ralph Engelstad Arena to tangle with the eighth-ranked Fighting Hawks. Unranked SLU will host #9 Providence and #12 UMass-Lowell next weekend before heading to Madison for a pair at #10 Wisconsin to close out October.
UND played well enough to win both contests last weekend at Alaska-Anchorage (outshooting the Seawolves 78-32) but let late leads slip away each night. North Dakota could not net the game-winner in Friday’s opener and settled for a 1-1 tie (followed by a meaningless shootout win), but Casey Johnson’s tally in Saturday’s overtime session sent the Fighting Hawks home with three out of a possible four points.
The last time St. Lawrence traveled to Grand Forks for a weekend series was in November 2013 for the Subway Holiday Classic. The Saints handled North Dakota in Friday’s opener before UND rebounded to earn a split. Both teams were unranked at the time, but Dave Hakstol took his team on a patented second-half run (21-5-2 including the victory over SLU) to reach the NCAA Frozen Four.
These out-of-conference games are critical for North Dakota’s postseason aspirations. Last season, Brad Berry’s squad went 7-2-2 in regular season non-conference action (after going 9-1-2 in 2015-16) and made its fifteenth consecutive NCAA tournament appearance (the longest active streak in the country). UND’s other non-conference opponents during the 2017-18 campaign will be Minnesota, Wisconsin, Union, and Bemidji State. Teams who travel to Alaska receive an exemption for those games, and therefore can play two extra non-conference games during the season.
St. Lawrence Team Profile
Head Coach: Mark Morris (2nd season at SLU, 17-15-7, .526)
National Ranking: NR/NR
This Season: 0-2-0 overall, 0-0-0 ECAC
Last Season: 17-13-7 overall, 12-6-4 ECAC (4th of 12 teams)
2017-18 Season Statistics:
Team Offense: 1.00 goals scored/game
Team Defense: 3.50 goals allowed/game
Power Play: 11.1% (1 of 9)
Penalty Kill: 80.0% (8 of 10)
Key Players: Senior F Mike Marnell (0-0-0), Senior F Joe Sullivan (0-0-0), Junior F Alex Gilmour (2-0-0), Junior F Jacob Pritchard (0-0-0), Sophomore D Ben Finkelstein (0-1-1), Senior D Nolan Gluchowski (0-0-0), Junior G Arthur Brey (0-2-0, 3.06 GAA, .902 SV%)
North Dakota Team Profile
Head Coach: Brad Berry (3rd season at UND, 56-22-8, .698)
National Ranking: #8/#8
This Season: 1-0-1 overall, 0-0-0-0 NCHC
Last Season: 21-16-3 overall (NCAA West Regional semifinalist), 11-12-1-1 NCHC (4th of 8 teams)
2017-18 Season Statistics:
Team Offense: 2.00 goals scored/game
Team Defense: 1.50 goals allowed/game
Power Play: 11.1% (1 of 9)
Penalty Kill: 100.0% (8 of 8)
Key Players: Junior F Shane Gersich (0-0-0), Senior F Austin Poganski (0-0-0), Junior F Rhett Gardner (0-2-2), Junior F Joel Janatuinen (0-0-0), Junior D Christian Wolanin (0-1-1), Sophomore D Colton Poolman (0-0-0), Senior G Cam Johnson (1-0-1, 1.43 GAA, .906 SV%)
By The Numbers
Last meeting: November 30, 2013 (Grand Forks, ND). One night after the visiting Saints shocked North Dakota with a 5-2 victory, UND turned the tables with a shorthanded goal (Rocco Grimaldi) midway through the first period and two goals 31 seconds apart in the second period (Connor Gaarder, Stephane Pattyn) to earn a 3-2 win and a series split. Zane Gothberg (later McIntyre) turned aside 25 St. Lawrence shots and helped the Green and White kill all three SLU power play opportunities.
Most important meeting: February 20 and 21, 1987 (Grand Forks, ND). The Hrkac Circus dismantled St. Lawrence in a best-of-three NCAA quarterfinal series, taking down the Saints 3-1 and 6-3 on their way to the program’s fifth national championship.
All-time record: UND leads the all-time series, 12-2-0 (.857), including a 7-1-0 (.875) mark in games played in Grand Forks. Before November 2013, North Dakota’s only loss to SLU was in Canton, New York during the 1981-82 season, a campaign that also ended in an NCAA title for the Fighting Sioux.
Last Ten: UND has won nine of the previous ten games between the schools, outscoring the Saints 40-21 over that stretch of games.
Game News and Notes
St. Lawrence has been a member of the ECAC since 1961 and has won the regular season title twice (2000 and 2007). North Dakota put 78 shots on net last weekend against Alaska Anchorage last weekend but scored only four goals. The Saints last made the NCAA tournament in 2007.
Tickets
Single game tickets remain available for both games this weekend against St. Lawrence. To purchase tickets, please visit the UND Box Office inside Ralph Engelstad Arena or point your internet device toward UNDSports.com/tickets.
Media Coverage
This weekend’s series will be telecast live by Midco Sports Network. A high definition webcast of both games will be available to NCHC.tv subscribers. All UND men’s hockey games (home and away) can be heard on 96.1 FM and on stations across the UND Sports Network (as well as through the iHeart Radio app). Follow @UNDMHockey for real-time Twitter updates, or follow the action via live chat at UNDsports.com.
The Prediction
Often, when two teams haven’t played in a while, the first period or two of the first game are played pretty close to the vest, without much action either way. I feel like this weekend’s games will be wide open from the outset, with plenty of chances for both squads. It’ll come down to special teams and goaltending, with neither side showing signs of life in the former and North Dakota holding a decided advantage in the latter. UND 4-1, 3-1.